DIY – Do It Yourself – has a lot of advantages, it’s fulfilling, cost effective, and for some people, it can be a source of new adventure. However, going full DIY on some tasks might be unreasonable. Just as it would be unreasonable for you to be your own therapist, some tasks are best left to trained professionals.
However many businesses, especially small and start-up business owners tend to try and manage their marketing and brand-boosting efforts themselves. Well, they might record some success while handling their marketing activities themselves, but another likely outcome is that their marketing efforts won’t be as effective and productive as it should be.
Here are a few reason you should strike out DIY and leave your business marketing to professionals.
You Do Not Have the Experience
Experience is by far one of the most important qualities that sets you and a professional apart. Regardless of the skills you have, if you haven’t spent years in a particular field or role, you cannot have the experience; and without experience, you definitely cannot be a professional. Meaning, with whatever you know, there’s still a whole lot you do not know about marketing.
I like to think of marketing as a process or a series of technical methods. The more you apply this process or methods in overcoming several business related challenges, the more proficient you become at solving marketing related problems. Whatever the case may be – exploiting new opportunities or identifying them, or rebranding a business, an experienced professional must have seen it all and definitely knows how to get the best results out of every situation.
You Do Not Have the Skill Set
Evidently, marketing is a very broad field that encompasses a plethora of skills. For each area of marketing, a variety of skills are required. For aspects relating to ‘Communications,’ skills such as having a sharp ear for language and a keen eye for good visuals are required. Anything that deals with ‘Research’ requires skills like ability to collect data, filter through the data and pinpoint whatever is useful. Coming up with a ‘Strategy’ requires analytical thinking and efficient problem solving skills.
Although a professional might not be an expert in all these areas, but most likely they can bring the required set of hands to the table to assist in these areas. This shows that DIY just won’t be enough to effectively market your brand.
Core Competence
Your core competence is that area in which you’re trained and experienced. Your core competence is your actual value or what your clientele value in you and what you get paid for.
If you’re good at human relations, then it’s your area of expertise and you should focus more on it. You can leave other business functions to professionals who are expert in those area.
“When launching a business, it’s critical to do what you are good at; sticking with your core competency is an absolute must,” – said Huberman, the founder of Hawke Media.
You should also consider that focusing on tasks that are not related to your core competence is not the best use of your time. Leaving these tasks to professional will ensure more productivity.
Perspective
Marketing is already a difficult task, but it can get a lot harder if you’re marketing yourself. If you’re marketing yourself, then everything you do is from an internal perspective. The problem about this is that you’re bound to get it wrong at some point, and this can make your marketing efforts less effective.
On the other hand, adopting an external and skilled approach in your marketing efforts will give you a thorough assessment of your business, highlighting your strong areas and strategies to capitalize on these areas.
With this external perspective, you can rest assured that your efforts are focused on areas where your brand is outstanding.
Strategy
Far too many business owners take it upon themselves to market their brands themselves. Often, they do this without a comprehensive strategy and mostly rely on small tactics. This is just like firing a gun with a blindfold on – you’ll shoot, but might not hit your actual target.
Having a comprehensive strategy for your marketing activities means you have a guide to follow. This will ensure that your marketing efforts are more productive and consistent. The only way to get a comprehensive and big-picture strategy is to leave it to a pro.
Marketing is very important for your business and you should give your marketing efforts utmost importance. So before making that decision to handle your marketing activities yourself, ask yourself ‘if it’ll be wise to be your own therapist.’